In June 2022, Brielle got an internship at Mayo Clinic in Rochester working in the Infectious Diseases Serology Lab, which was also the lab where Mark worked. Brielle had waited 2.5 years to apply for this job since she had to be going into her senior year to be eligible. Little did she know, Brielle was also waiting to meet her future husband (awwww). One day in late June, he asked her to morning break and after that, they took very few breaks apart. They bonded over their shared love for the Navigators (Christian ministry group), weightlifting, God, and microbiology. They were actually both at the 2019 Navigators fall retreat, but don't remember seeing each other - cool how God has a way of bringing two people together at the right time! Their friendship grew and they started to spend time outside of work together going to their coworker/friend Tyler’s softball games, hiking, the gym, and church. In September 2022, Brielle's internship was over and she went back to the cities to finish her degree. She and Mark stayed in touch, met up at a Gopher football game with his family, and would text every once in a while to catch up. Fast forward to December 2022, Brielle's brother taught her how to play blackjack after a family Christmas. That was exactly what Mark needed to hear in order to ask her out on a date to Mystic Lake Casino...with his parents (accidentally, haha). They went on their first date on January 7th, 2023 and spent the whole day together. It was a blast!! This was the start of her gambling addiction…just kidding!!! ;) While she was in school in the cities and he was working in Rochester, they made their relationship a priority by calling a couple times a week and FaceTimeing/visiting each other at least once a week. They were grateful for technology and would talk for hours on the phone, but to them it felt like seconds. They saw the distance as a great opportunity to truly get to know each other on a deeper level and would talk about anything and everything. It also made them more appreciative of the time they did get to spend together in-person. They would spend their time going to dog parks with his dog Beignet, hanging out with friends, going to church together, accomplishing new weightlifting goals, training for and running an 8k and 10k together, shingling his roof, playing pickleball, hiking, going to our favorite river spot in Rochester, and eating ice cream. In November 2023, she got a job in the Bacteriology Lab at Mayo in Rochester and she and Mark were finally closer to each other...yay!!! She joined his small group at church and they really enjoyed being able to do more things together. In February 2024, Mark bought a ring and asked Brielle's dad for her hand in marriage. Mark decided on a day to propose and left work early to set up the wooded area in his backyard. She showed up to his house after work and had no idea what was in store for her. It was just the two of them and Beignet, it was a beautiful moment. They joyfully celebrated with wine and cheese...and free Chick-fil-A nuggets (thank you CFA, haha).